LOS ANGELES — The Lakers needed to dig deep to beat a young Orlando Magic team on Monday night, and D’Angelo Russell stepped up to the challenge. Russell scored 28 points on 10-14 shooting to help lead the Lakers to a 106-103 victory and bring them back to .500, a mark that took the Lakers 74 games to reach last year.
While Russell had plenty of clutch threes and nice mid-range finishes paired with some impressive ball handling, it was his first-quarter dunk that surprised and awed fans. It started with Russell passing to Anthony Davis on the wing and Davis handing it off to Russell in rhythm, going downhill at full speed.